In more than 20 years of operation, actress Liu Yifei has been associated with many famous roles such as Bai Xiu Zhu in "The Story of the Golden Family", Wang Yu Yan of "The Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils", Zhao Lingi in "The Legend of the Condor Heroes" and Xiao Long Nu of "The Return of the Condor Heroes". The image of "fairy sister" also followed her for most of her career.
Amidst the old stories about Liu Yifei being spread, Dilraba Dilmurat was suddenly dragged into controversy because of her role in the Nine Heavens project.
According to information being published by Chinese media, the character played by Dilraba Dilmurat was initially introduced as Wang Yuyan. This name coincides with the character of novelist Kim Dung that Liu Yifei once played in the 2003 Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils version.
A topic named "Detective Dee - Vuong Ngu Yen 2.0" then appeared on the search page, sparking reactions from Liu Yifei's fans. A part of the audience believes that the term "2.0" easily creates a feeling of comparison or takes advantage of the influence of a classic role.
In the opposite direction, Dilraba Dilmurat's fans commented that the two characters only have the same names, completely different backgrounds and fates. Nine trùng thiên is introduced as a mysterious film, set in the Republic era, not an adaptation of the novel Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils.
The debate became more complicated when the phrase on the search bar was said to have been changed from "Wang Yu Yan" to "Wang Yu Yan" - two nearly phonetic writings in Chinese. However, there has been no official announcement confirming who changed the topic and purpose of this.
As of August 13, Liu Yifei and Dilireba have not directly spoken out about the debate.
The incident shows that a character name and a search keyword can also be pushed into a confrontation between fan communities.
